Astronomy Images

[NY4Q]

Beautimus...

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/bad_astronomy/2012/12/best_astronomy_images_2012_see_the_most_beautiful_ images_of_the_universe.single.html

[kf0rt]

Coolio.

[KC2UGV]

Those were pretty cool. I've seen most of them as they came out, but I had missed the rocket-aurora-laser one :)

[N8YX]

Neat.

Anyone here into amateur astronomy - optical, radio, etc?

[KC2UGV]

Neat.

Anyone here into amateur astronomy - optical, radio, etc?

I'm into really-amateur astronomy. Like $100 telescope, and plinking stars to a map kind of amateur. Wife says I have too many expensive hobbies as it is.

[X-Rated]

I belonged to the 3M amateur club in Austin (which was open to local hams) and they made me the program chairman one year. I found a speaker from the University of Texas to give a speech on radio astronomy. It was mind boggling. The degree of focus they can get with large radio antenna arrays is pretty mind boggling for astronomy through the atmosphere. They also explained that much of the noise you get when you plug your antenna in at 28MHz is from space (when the band is otherwise dead and you have no power line noise). He discussed the frequency windows. This was about 20 years ago and I have forgotten a lot of them, but they know what frequencies are good for certain effects. I was blown away.

These pictures are really great. I think the Chandra project is dead now. I hope Hubble can keep going for some time.

[kf0rt]

Neat.

Anyone here into amateur astronomy - optical, radio, etc?


I've got some optics I use to check out heavenly bodies. On da beach.

[N2CHX]

Spectacular!

[K7SGJ]

I've got some optics I use to check out heavenly bodies. On da beach.


Bifocals don't count, and BTW, you have a curly hair on your left cheek.

[kf0rt]

Bifocals don't count, and BTW, you have a curly hair on your left cheek.

Get ya one of these for that D7K, Eddie:

http://photographylife.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Nikon-70-300mm-f4.5-5.6G-VR-650x375.jpg

[K7SGJ]

Get ya one of these for that D7K, Eddie:

http://photographylife.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Nikon-70-300mm-f4.5-5.6G-VR-650x375.jpg

Is that the 70-300? And you only want $20. Do you need my shipping address?

[WØTKX]

Here's a new one. Saturn back-lit by the sun. :agree:

http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/714619main_pia14934-43_428-321.jpg

[N8YX]

I've tinkered with the idea of observing Jovian decametric radio signals for years - have tried it on occasion with various commercially built ham gear - but met with no success due to the noisy IF stages of most of those receivers.

Then I tried the Paragon II last evening.

Tuned to 20.100, set the mode to USB (though LSB will work), set the IF filter to the 6.0KHz position and turned the AGC off. PBT centered, notch/fade/BP controls adjusted to minimize what little background noise remained...and managed to catch an S (short) burst storm from ~1AM until ~4AM this morning. Would have never heard the signals with the IC-R71A or IC-751A which were in use before, and didn't hear them on the Drake R7s either.

The Jovian emissions sweep down in frequency about 20MHz/second, so the next trick will be to rig the equally quiet FT-980 up with a YO-901 bandscope and see if I can catch the sweepers.

[XE1/N5AL]

What are you using as an antenna to hear the Jovian radio emissions? With Jupiter currently so prominent in the nighttime sky, I am curious to do this as well. The Radio Jove project recommends a two element phased dipole array: Radio Jove (http://radiojove.gsfc.nasa.gov/telescope/). Are you getting good results with something as simple as a 15 meter dipole?

[N8YX]

What are you using as an antenna to hear the Jovian radio emissions? With Jupiter currently so prominent in the nighttime sky, I am curious to do this as well. The Radio Jove project recommends a two element phased dipole array: Radio Jove (http://radiojove.gsfc.nasa.gov/telescope/). Are you getting good results with something as simple as a 15 meter dipole?
I'm using the famous...wait for it...G5RV @ 35ft!

:snicker:

Tonight I'm going to try with an 80-40-20-15M inverted vee with the legs SE/NW; apex at 45ft.

Saw the antennas on RadioJove. Given all the ham antennas currently in the air, there's no space for the 2-el setup (or any other dedicated radio astronomy antenna).

When space is available I'm going to build an 18-26MHz rotatable log-periodic and mount it with the boom tilted about 20 degrees off horizontal. I'll steer it with a satellite tracking program or a dedicated controller, setting the array to make periodic adjustments as Jupiter transits.

[XE1/N5AL]

When space is available I'm going to build an 18-26MHz rotatable log-periodic and mount it with the boom tilted about 20 degrees off horizontal. I'll steer it with a satellite tracking program or a dedicated controller, setting the array to make periodic adjustments as Jupiter transits.
Your neighbors are gonna think you're talking to UFOs. :)

[KG4CGC]

Your neighbors are gonna think you're talking to UFOs. :)

Or shooting down satellites.

[N8YX]

Or shooting down satellites.

That's what the array which sports Mode B/J/L antennas along with a 250MHz helix is for. :whistle:

[NQ6U]

Your neighbors are gonna think you're talking to UFOs. :)

Hah! Mine already think that. Are they ever gonna surprised when they find out that I am, in fact, talking to an alien invasion force located on the far side of the moon.

[W3WN]

Hah! Mine already think that. Are they ever gonna surprised when they find out that I am, in fact, talking to an alien invasion force located on the far side of the moon.Do they count for DXCC?